Private Schools: What Are The Top 12 Important Questions Most Parents Don’t Ask?
My husband and I recently chose a private school for our child in Boulder County, Colorado. Looking back, we really didn’t ask all the questions we could have asked, to understand which private school would give our child the best school experience and the best foundation for a life of learning. Fortunately, now that we understand more about the private schools, we still feel great about our decision. If we had it to do all over again, we’d choose the same school! However, not everyone is so fortunate. So, in addition to the top questions parents ask the private schools, I’ve also put together a list of the top questions parents don’t ask! Here are some questions that can be very important, yet not everyone thinks of them when choosing a private school. As you read these questions, there may be some you would like to add to your list of questions to ask the schools.
1. Does your school teach academics to the exclusion of crucial areas like the arts, physical development and foreign language classes? Most parents agree that academic achievement is crucial for success in life. However, for many parents, a well-rounded education includes music, drama, art, physical activity, and language learning. Does a school have to limit their subjects to the “Three R’s” to support academic success? Fortunately, you don’t have to settle for a restricted academics-only curriculum to produce high college entrance exam scores. In fact, some well-rounded approaches can point to evidence of creating better results measured by future academic achievement.
2. Does your school have a track record of successful graduates? How well do they perform after they graduate? Ideally, a school will be imparting to students the skills they need for a meaningful, successful lifetime. This can include a life-long passion for learning, as well as achievement in higher education.
3. In retrospect, how do your school’s graduates rate the school? Years later, after students have had some time to evaluate the effects of their schooling, do they appreciate it and would they recommend it to others? How many would send their own children to the school they attended?
4. How does this school approach discipline, and what conduct do they accept from students? Ideally, a school will have policies that clarify the conduct they allow, as well as what they do not allow. Hopefully, discipline will be administered with kindness as well as firmness. The school’s disciplinary policy will significantly impact your child’s school experience. Too strict, and it can stifle a child’s normal exploration. Too lenient, and it can allow chaos to reign in the classroom or on the playground.
5. How do you assess how well students are learning? This is an important aspect of education. Does the school focus on testing, or on other types of observation? Does the school only evaluate academic skills such as reading and math, or does it also take into account abilities such as social and artistic skills? You may also be interested in the ways in which the school communicates these assessments with parents.
6. How do this school’s teaching methods and curriculum fit with children’s developmental stages? Learning to read is important–important enough to find the optimal time for it in a child’s development. Although many educators are striving to teach reading skills to younger and younger children, few are asking what the long-term effect of this approach may be. Interestingly, children who learn to read a bit later end up reading just as well, and they tend to enjoy reading more! It’s worth taking some time to look into the knowledge we have from the field of developmental psychology regarding children’s stages of development and how that effects learning.
7. Does this private school have a particular approach to spiritual subjects? Many parents have strong beliefs about religious or spiritual subjects. To play it safe, many schools simply avoid the subject altogether. Some schools teach a specific spiritual belief system, and others communicate a general spirituality that can support a wide array of individual beliefs.
8. What does this school expect from parents? The parents of the other children in class will have a strong influence on your child’s school experience. For your child to learn the best, it could be to your advantage if your school has some guidelines for parenting in ways that are most conducive to children’s behavior and attitudes in school.
As an example, the average American household watches TV 8.2 hours a day. Even one hour or more of TV per day has been linked to poor attitudes toward school and poor achievement in 14 year olds. Three hours or more is associated with learning and attention difficulties. Kids who have trouble paying attention end up distracting the whole classroom. Do you think your child would learn the best if most children in the classroom were watching three or more hours of TV a day, or if most were watching less than 1 hour a day? If you are willing to make the effort to limit your child’s TV viewing, then it’s greatly to your benefit for a school to require this of all parents. I would not be surprised if TV viewing played a significant role in the poor performance of so many schools today.
9. How does your school support emotional and social development? Meaningful, healthy relationships are an important ingredient of a truly happy life. Does the school emphasize cooperation and relating well with others? Does the school support healthy emotional development?
10. In what ways are the young children encouraged to play at your private school? If you are looking for a kindergarten or preschool, you might want to know if they let children be children. Active play and using the imagination are crucial for a young child, yet many schools divert much of a young child’s energy toward learning academics.
11. Does your school go beyond rote learning and memorization to actually developing cognitive skills? There’s nothing wrong with memorizing facts. It’s actually useful and necessary. The problem comes when that’s all students are taught. The best individuals in any field are able to apply their creativity and reasoning to advance our knowledge in that field.
12. How else is your school unique? No matter how many specific questions you ask, there could be something unique about the school that you didn’t know to ask about. So a open-ended question can give a private school spokesperson a chance to let you know what’s special about their school.
Once you get past the basics, these in-depth questions can yield information to help you make a more informed decision. I can only hope that you are as thrilled with the private school you choose as we are with ours!
Make sure your list of questions is complete! Here are 10 more questions parents often ask the private schools. Visit www.PrivateSchoolsBoulder.com to find out what private school the author chose in Boulder, CO.
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